Written Answers Friday 29 April 2005

Scottish Executive

Drug Misuse

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans to provide heroin addicts with heroin on the NHS.

Hugh Henry: We have no plans for a centrally-supported initiative. However, it is already possible for suitably qualified clinicians in Scotland to apply for Home Office licences to prescribe diamorphine as a treatment for drug addiction. Decisions on treatment plans are for individual patients and their clinicians.

  A range of treatment and rehabilitation interventions for drug addiction is already available, supported by record levels of investment from the Executive.

Drug and Alcohol Misuse

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients have been through the Detox 5 programme in the last two years, broken down by NHS board area.

Hugh Henry: The following table details the number of clients admitted to the Detox 5 programme in Harrogate by NHS board area for 2003-04 and 2004-05, as reported by Drug and Alcohol Action Teams:

  

NHS Board
2003-04
2004-05


Argyll and Clyde
0
0


Ayrshire and Arran
0
0


Borders
0
0


Dumfries and Galloway
0
0


Fife
0
0


Forth Valley
0
0


Grampian
12
10


Greater Glasgow
0
0


Highland
0
0


Lanarkshire
1
0


Lothian
0
3


Orkney
0
0


Shetland
0
0


Tayside
0
0


Western Isles
0
0



  This table will not include any self-funded clients.

Drug and Alcohol Misuse

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many NHS patients have been through the Green Door programme in the last two years, broken down by NHS board area.

Hugh Henry: The following table details the number of clients admitted to the Green Door programme by NHS board area for 2003-04 and 2004-05, as reported by drug and alcohol action teams:

  

NHS Board
2003-04
2004-05


Argyll and Clyde
0
0


Ayrshire and Arran
0
0


Borders
0
0


Dumfries and Galloway
0
0


Fife
0
0


Forth Valley
0
0


Grampian
8
3


Greater Glasgow
0
0


Highland
0
0


Lanarkshire
0
0


Lothian
0
2


Orkney
0
0


Shetland
0
0


Tayside
0
0


Western Isles
0
0



  This table will not include any self-funded clients.

Drug and Alcohol Misuse

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the success rate of patients going through the Detox 5 programme has been in the last two years, broken down by NHS board area.

Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the success rate of patients going through the Green Door programme has been in the last two years, broken down by NHS board area.

Hugh Henry: This information is not held centrally.

Energy

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to encourage the development of biofuels and what specific support is available to encourage the development of biodiesel.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive recognises the potential for biofuels to contribute to a low carbon energy sector, and in particular transport energy and recognises that biodiesel currently represents one of the most promising options. Farmers growing crops for biofuel production may be eligible, under the Energy Crops Scheme, for an additional payment of 45 euros per hectare.

  A public consultation on a UK Biofuels Strategy was completed at the end of last year. As a result of the recommendations arising from that consultation, the UK Government has been considering the possible introduction of a Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) for biofuels and other renewable transport fuels.

  The Executive has supported the construction of Scotland’s first large-scale biodiesel plant by the Argent Group, with an offer of £1.2 million in Regional Selective Assistance. £700,000 has been paid to date, and the plant started production earlier this year.

Energy

Alex Johnstone (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with organisations such as the National Farmers Union Scotland and other potential stakeholders about the development of biofuels, including biodiesel, and what the outcome has been of any such discussions.

Lewis Macdonald: Forestry Commission Scotland is responsible for the administration and promotion of biofuel crop growth within the Executive. Senior officials from Forestry Commission Scotland are scheduled to meet with NFU Scotland on 26 May to discuss, amongst other things, biofuels, energy crops and short rotation coppice.

Flood Prevention

Nora Radcliffe (Gordon) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-12204 by Lewis Macdonald on 25 November 2004, when it will issue a discussion paper on its proposals for the designation of responsible authorities under section 2 of the Water Environment and Water Services (Scotland) Act 2003.

Lewis Macdonald: The Executive plans to issue a discussion paper on its proposals for the designation of responsible authorities under Section 2 of the Water Environment and Water Services (Scotland) Act 2003 within the next three months.

Health

Mr Stewart Maxwell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the finding of Professor James McEwen’s review of the provision of chronic pain services that pain clinics generate direct health service savings equal to twice their running costs, what plans there are to (a) produce a national strategy for pain services and (b) fund the provision of comprehensive pain services in order to achieve these savings.

Mr Andy Kerr: This was not a finding of Professor McEwen’s review but a quotation from one of the published studies he used as references. In recommendation 10 of his report, Professor McEwen said that it should be noted that the evidence from economic evaluations indicates that by bringing chronic pain services to an agreed standard substantial savings can be achieved. The Executive has made Professor McEwen’s report available to NHS boards and will be holding a conference to discuss best practice on pain management in the near future.

Health and Safety

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will issue guidelines for funeral directors handling infected cadavers similar to recent Department of Health advice.

Mr Andy Kerr: The Department of Health guidelines on handling infected cadavers has been referred to an expert group to consider whether they should be adopted for use by NHSScotland. The group are holding on-going discussions on this issue.

  The specific issue of advice to funeral directors will be examined as part of a wide ranging review of burial and cremation legislation in Scotland being conducted by a group chaired by Mr Robert Brodie CB. These two groups will link to ensure any future policy/guidelines are developed in tandem.

Homelessness

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been classified as homeless in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

Malcolm Chisholm: The numbers of households assessed as homeless under the homelessness legislation by local authorities in 2002-03 and 2003-04 are published in table 11 in the Scottish Executive Statistical Bulletin Operation of the Homeless Persons Legislation in Scotland: National and Local Authority Analyses 2002-03 and Table 12 in Operation of the Homeless Persons Legislation in Scotland: National and Local Authority Analyses 2003-04. These publications are available on the Scottish Executive housing statistics branch website at www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/housing/hsbref . Prior to December 2001, figures were only available in terms of number of applications rather than households and households making repeat applications would therefore be counted more than once. Data for 2004-05 will be published later this year.

Housing

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it defines overcrowding with regard to accommodation.

Malcolm Chisholm: The definition of overcrowding is dependent on its use. Part VII of the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 defines a house as overcrowded if it fails either of two tests. The room standard is contravened when two people of opposite sexes, who are not living as husband and wife, have to sleep in the same room. This does not apply to children under 10. The space standard sets limits on the number of people who can occupy a house, relative to both the number and floor area of the rooms available as sleeping accommodation. For this purpose, children aged at least one but less than 10 count as half of a person, while children under the age of one do not count at all.

  Household surveys such as the Scottish Household Survey, the survey of English Housing and the Scottish and English House Condition Surveys uses the bedroom standard to estimate the number of households occupying overcrowded houses. This allows one bedroom for a cohabiting couple; a single person aged 21 or over; a pair of the same sex aged between 10 and 20; a pair of children under 10, regardless of sex; a pair consisting of a person aged between 10 and 20 and one under 10, of the same sex, and any other individual.

  The 2001 Census, which gathered information on the number of rooms in a house but did not separately identify the number of bedrooms, reports overcrowding on the basis of an occupancy rating. This relates the actual number of rooms to the number of rooms "required" by the members of the household (based on the relationships between them and their ages). The room requirement is calculated as follows:

  - a one person household is assumed to require three rooms (two common rooms and a bedroom)-

  - where there are two or more residents it is assumed that they require a minimum of two common rooms plus one bedroom for:

  i. each couple (as determined by the relationship question)

  ii. each lone parent

  iii. any other person aged 16 or over

  iii. each pair aged 10 to 15 of the same sex

  iv. each pair formed from a remaining person aged 10 to 15 with a child aged under 10 of the same sex

  v. each pair of children aged under 10 remaining

  vi. each remaining person (either aged 10 to 15 or under 10).

Housing

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what difficulties it has encountered in implementing its pledge to give everyone the right to a home by 2012.

Malcolm Chisholm: Scottish ministers are required to make a statement by the end of 2005 on the steps which have been, are being and will be taken to ensure that every unintentionally homeless person is entitled to home by 2012.

  We will consult on this issue in the summer and are currently collecting detailed information from local authorities regarding the current and forecasted future position in their area. We are also liaising with local authorities through the Homelessness Monitoring Group and the recently established sub-group on 2012 planning.

  More broadly our recent housing policy statement Homes for Scotland’s People sets out in depth the programme of actions – past, present and future – responding to the housing challenges we have set ourselves.

Housing

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many families of (a) three, (b) four, (c) five, (d) six and (e) seven or more people have resided in (i) one, (ii) two, (iii) three and (iv) four-bedroom accommodation in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Scottish Household Survey collects information on the number of people and the number of bedrooms for each household in the sample. This has been carried out every year since 1999, however, the annual sample sizes for many local authorities are very small, as are the sample sizes for larger families. Reliable information in the form requested can be provided only for Scotland as a whole and for the two year periods 1999-2000 and 2001-02. This is provided in tables 1 and 2.

  Table 1 Family Size by Number of Bedrooms (Scotland): 1999-2000

  

Number of People in Household
Number of Bedrooms (%)
Sample Size (100%)


One
Two
Three
Four or more


Two
5
73
19
3
829


Three
2
45
42
11
2,602


Four
*
22
56
21
3,351


Five
*
9
57
34
1,281


Six
*
6
51
42
329


Seven or more
-
4
37
59
101



  Table 2 Family Size by Number of Bedrooms (Scotland): 2001-02

  

Number of People
in Household
Number of Bedrooms (%)
Sample Size
(100%)


One
Two
Three
Four or more


Two
4
72
21
3
857


Three
2
45
43
10
2,535


Four
1
22
56
22
3,331


Five
-
9
53
38
1,207


Six
*
4
50
45
295


Seven or more
-
4
39
56
89



  Source: Scottish Household Survey

  The most reliable measure of overcrowding available from the Scottish Household Survey is the percentage of households living in accommodation above and below the bedroom standard. This standard takes into account household composition and the number of bedrooms a household has at its disposal. The standard assumes that a separate bedroom is required for:

  each co-habiting couple

  any other person aged 21 years or over

  each pair of young persons of the same sex aged 10 to 20 years

  each pair of children under 10 years (regardless of sex).

  Unpaired young persons aged 10 to 20 are paired with a child under 10 of the same sex if possible or allocated a separate bedroom. Any unpaired children under 10 are also allocated a separate bedroom.

  Tables 3 and 4 show the percentages of families in the Scottish Household Survey living in accommodation above and below the bedroom standard by local authority. Due to small sample sizes for some authorities, the figures have been combined over the two-year periods 1999-2000 and 2001-02.

  Table 3 Percentage of Families and Bedroom Standard by Local Authority: 1999-2000

  

 
Bedroom Standard (%)
Sample Size
(100%)


3+ Above Standard
2 Above Standard
1 Above Standard
Equal to Standard
Below Standard


Scotland
2
8
33
48
9
8,493


Aberdeen City
1
9
27
54
9
274


Aberdeenshire
4
15
36
40
5
395


Angus
4
10
33
48
5
193


Argyll and Bute
5
10
25
47
14
154


Clackmannanshire
2
6
33
54
6
185


Dumfries and Galloway
4
8
35
46
7
242


Dundee City
2
4
25
61
9
175


East Ayrshire
-
8
35
50
7
187


East Dunbartonshire
1
7
47
41
3
188


East Lothian
4
13
34
40
10
177


East Renfrewshire
-
11
46
39
4
168


Edinburgh, City of
2
9
33
45
11
582


Eilean Siar
8
13
38
33
9
165


Falkirk
-
7
38
47
9
247


Fife
1
9
34
50
6
542


Glasgow City
1
3
22
56
17
813


Highland
5
10
37
45
3
317


Inverclyde
-
5
29
47
20
163


Midlothian
1
6
32
51
11
187


Moray
2
10
36
47
5
171


North Ayrshire
1
7
38
45
9
230


North Lanarkshire
-
4
29
55
12
536


Orkney Islands
3
11
45
37
3
146


Perth and Kinross
1
10
36
46
6
192


Renfrewshire
*
6
27
55
12
261


Scottish Borders
1
11
34
49
5
154


Shetland Islands
4
19
35
36
7
205


South Ayrshire
4
7
31
53
5
188


South Lanarkshire
2
9
34
45
10
458


Stirling
-
13
41
41
5
171


West Dunbartonshire
-
4
30
56
10
146


West Lothian
1
11
38
44
5
281



  Source: Scottish Household Survey.

  Table 4 Percentage of Families and Bedroom Standard by Local Authority: 2001-02

  

 
Bedroom standard (%)
Sample Size
(100%)


3+ Above Standard
2 Above Standard
1 Above Standard
Equal to Standard
Below Standard


Scotland
2
8
34
48
8
8,314


Aberdeen City
3
9
27
49
12
270


Aberdeenshire
3
14
39
38
5
384


Angus
2
8
28
56
6
175


Argyll and Bute
2
12
33
45
8
146


Clackmannanshire
2
8
33
51
7
166


Dumfries and Galloway
3
5
35
49
7
219


Dundee City
3
8
30
45
14
207


East Ayrshire
1
7
29
55
7
204


East Dunbartonshire
3
7
49
37
4
184


East Lothian
3
16
34
43
4
180


East Renfrewshire
2
10
46
39
4
163


Edinburgh, City of
3
9
32
47
9
533


Eilean Siar
2
9
45
35
8
139


Falkirk
1
4
40
50
5
232


Fife
2
8
34
49
7
532


Glasgow City
1
3
22
59
14
799


Highland
4
13
33
45
6
333


Inverclyde
4
8
29
47
13
135


Midlothian
1
8
41
41
9
206


Moray
2
10
37
46
5
184


North Ayrshire
1
7
36
50
7
215


North Lanarkshire
1
6
34
48
12
546


Orkney Islands
6
14
40
38
3
160


Perth and Kinross
3
18
31
41
7
188


Renfrewshire
*
7
35
48
10
240


Scottish Borders
3
9
40
42
6
163


Shetland Islands
4
12
38
41
5
194


South Ayrshire
2
8
32
49
9
180


South Lanarkshire
1
6
29
55
9
475


Stirling
3
13
44
34
6
159


West Dunbartonshire
-
4
27
61
8
126


West Lothian
1
10
36
48
4
277



  Source: Scottish Household Survey.

  Notes:

  1. Comparisons between years and areas should be treated with caution as the figures may show variations due to random sampling error. This will be the case particularly for the smaller local authorities.

  2. The following symbols are used in the tables:

  - nil.

  *less than 0.5%.

Nursing

Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many fully-trained psychiatric nurses there are in each NHS board area.

Mr Andy Kerr: Qualified nurses working within a mental health setting have increased by 9.4% since 1999 to 6,655 whole-time equivalent (at September 2004). Latest figures (2003-04) show that the number of pre-registered students undertaking training within the Registered Nurse - Mental Health category has increased significantly, up by 19% since 1999.

  Qualified nurses and midwives are at record levels and we remain on track to achieve the Partnership Agreement target of attracting 12,000 nurses and midwives into the service by 2007.

  Information on staff employed in NHS Scotland is published on the Scottish Health Statistics website under Workforce Statistics, at www.isdscotland.org/workforce.

  Section E, table E1 gives whole-time equivalent details of qualified nurses working within a hospital mental health setting and qualified community psychiatric nurses broken down by NHS board since 1994. Table E2 shows headcount. Latest available figures are at 30 September 2004.

  However, a proportion of those working within a hospital mental health setting will be fully qualified but not specifically as a Registered Nurse – Mental Health.

Parliamentary Questions

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) mode average, (b) mean and (c) median average time in days it has taken to issue substantive answers after holding answers were given since the beginning of Session 1 of the Parliament, broken down by month the holding answer was issued.

Ms Margaret Curran: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Planning

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why South Lanarkshire’s planning committee has not yet received a response from the Executive regarding planning application CL/04/0444.

Johann Lamont: I understand that application CL/04/0444 was granted planning permission by South Lanarkshire Council on 12 April. The Executive’s Air Climate and Engineering Division and Trunk Road Network Management Division both responded to the council’s consultation exercise indicating that they had no comments to offer on the proposal.

Prison Service

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the maximum limit of 5% of contract price for performance revenue deduction, as referred to in Schedule F to Minute of Agreement between the Secretary of State for Scotland and Kilmarnock Prison Services Limited for the Design, Construction, Management and Financing of a Prison at Kilmarnock , has been applied in each quarter of the prison’s operation.

Cathy Jamieson: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  No.